Louis Theroux is working on a documenting exploring the “new world” of rap and hip-hop in the US, with a main focus on the southern states.
Called Forbidden America, the hour-long film is part of a three-episode documentary series investigating “the impact of the internet and social media on some of the most controversial corners of American entertainment”.
Theroux will explore the ways in which rap and hip-hop artists promote themselves online and connect with fans via social media. Other episodes in the series will explore far right groups in the US and the porn industry.
“The world has gone through massive changes in the last few years, in particular from the effects of social media. This new series looks at the way those changes have affected people in America who are in different ways involved in dangerous, extreme, or morally questionable lifestyles,” Theroux said in a press release.
“Far-right groups that have found new influence through gaming and streaming services. Porn performers who have seen power shift to them as they’ve embraced creator-controlled apps and called out alleged predators in the industry. And in the rap world young men with big dreams caught up in feuds and high-risk behaviour in the click-driven world of social media,” he added.
This isn’t the first time Theroux has dived into the world of rap. His 2000 documentary Weird Weekends saw the filmmaker travel to New Orleans in the hope of becoming the “first white, middle-class gangsta rapper”. Refresh your memory below.
Forbidden America will be available to watch on BBC Two and iPlayer. There’s no release date yet, but while we wait, take a look at Theroux’s interview with Dazed about the art of making documentaries here.